


The Market

by MCEWEN



Category: Original Work
Genre: Alinash, Gen, Knights of Naren books, ruby - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-10
Updated: 2018-03-10
Packaged: 2019-03-29 10:54:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 458
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13925667
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MCEWEN/pseuds/MCEWEN





	The Market

The Kingsfall market bustled with activity, more so than usual, as Alinash picked his way through the crowd to a good vantage point. He held Ruby’s hand tight as he climbed up the stairs near the entrance of the assembly building. A man wearing a sign and shouting walked back and forth on the street below the stairs. She had been with him for six years, so she must be seven or eight by now. He wasn’t sure as he had found her when she was a young child, still in diapers but old enough to walk, wandering the slums. He had been found the same way when he was a child, he saw it as his duty to take her in and teach her how to survive.

He sat with her near the top of the stairs and gave her half of the sandwich he had found sitting on top of the garbage on the way here. “Do you see any good market stalls? Remember what I told you.”

“It’s really crowded today, so most of the shopkeepers are busy.”

“They’ll be busy anyway when I go to talk to them. You want the shopkeeper to be busy, but too many other people shopping at the same place is a bad idea. Remember, every person is two more eyes.”

“Some of them have more than one person working at them. Those are a bit more difficult,” Ruby stated.

“Right. We’ll avoid those for now. Which one do you want to try?”

“That one with the L-shaped table over there. There’s only one person.”

He swatted her hand. “Don’t point.”

She frowned.

“Sorry. I see it. It looks like just clothing, but we could use some new clothes. Here’s the shopping bag. Carry it like you’re just browsing.” He’d already put some rags in the bottom to make it look like she’d bought something somewhere else. “Hold it, let me see.”

She put the straps of the bag over her shoulder and stood with it.

“Keep this one end open a bit. Bend the fold out. It’ll be easier to drop things in.”

Alinash looked at the crowd as Ruby adjusted the bag. People were so occupied with what they were doing it was almost too easy. Even the man shouting in the street drew no attention. People walked by while he shouted that the end of the world was nigh. No one was listening to him. He supposed there could be a lesson in not being noticed, but he was busy teaching her proper techniques for stealing at the market right now. Being invisible by being obvious would have to wait.

He looked back at her. “That looks good. Are you ready?”

She nodded.

“Good. Let’s go.”


End file.
